People said I was born with a silver spoon: Sonam Kapoor

Sonam Kapoor looks a lot more confident and composed than she did a few films back. When we met her at the Fever 104 FM office, the actor admits that she made some rash choices when she was younger, but has now figured out what she wants.

Sonam Kapoor looks a lot more confident and composed than she did a few films back. When we met her at the Fever 104 FM office, the actor admits that she made some rash choices when she was younger, but has now figured out what she wants. She tells us about doing comedy, the pressure of doing films without popular co-stars, and why she should have relied on her father (senior actor Anil Kapoor).

You're the solo heroine of your next release. How much pressure are you feeling?

The same amount I felt during Raanjhanaa (2013) and Khoobsurat (2014). Everyone in the film is 5,000 times more talented than me, and working with such actors helps you elevate your own performance. There's Rajkummar (Rao), who is a National Award-winning actor, and Pulkit (Samrat) and Varun (Sharma), who are naturals. I am lucky to have them as co-stars.

You seem to have found your groove and come into your own with your last few films. Would you agree?

I got a lot of appreciation for Delhi-6 (2009). I was 21 years old and I hadnft relied on my dad for advice. People would call me his daughter and they said I was born with a silver spoon, but whether anyone believed it or not, I wanted to learn on my own and make my own choices.

However, that was a mistake. I should have spoken to dad and let him guide me. Had I taken his advice, my career trajectory would have been different. I was young and rash at that time, but eventually, I realised that whether they were big or small, I had to do films I believed in. I didn't let go of my personal fashion sense, which is why people talk about it, and I have got many endorsement deals due to it too. With my movies, I was trying to fit into a slot, and that didn't work for me. I made mistakes, but I've grown up and somewhat figured out who I am now.

Does working without popular co-stars scare you?

You can never tell which film will work and which won't. Working with the biggest directors and actors didn't give me the box-office credit I deserved, so I feel it doesn't matter. The fate of a film can go any way, so I'd rather go with my gut, enjoy the process and leave the rest to the audience. I'm not in a race; I'm doing my own thing. I have a lot going for me in a happy way, not a crazy, ambitious or ugly manner.

There are only so many Fridays in a year. Since the films are releasing on a long, four-day weekend — and they’re very different movies — hopefully, the audience will watch both. And I love Neeraj Pandey’s (Baby’s director) work; I even went to his office once to tell him that I want to work with him.

Post Khoobsurat (2014), was it easier to do comedy for the second time in this film?

So many people meet me and tell me I should do comedy. I don’t know why (laughs). Maybe they think I am funny, but then, most people don’t get my sense of humour. For instance, so many of my ‘quotable quotes’ that went on to become headlines, were all said in jest. Things get lost in translation. As for comedy films, these directors have felt that they should turn me into a comic actor, so I am getting such roles and they are fun. Comedy is the toughest genre, and you need great timing to crack it.

You recently said that you don’t do films for awards. What did you mean?

I didn’t say that. What I said was that I don’t sign films thinking of whether they will fetch me awards. I just keep the story, my character and director in mind when I give a film my nod. Eventually, if I get an award, that would be amazing. It sounded different when what I said was published. It made me sound like one of those actors who say that they don’t want to go to awards functions.